Issue - meetings

Following scrutiny, members supported the Local Flood Risk Management Strategy and Plan to Cabinet.

The Cabinet Member for Streetscene Scott Jones gave members an update on the report. he advised that the Council is acting as a lead local flood authority for the region and has a statutory duty to produce and develop a local Flood Risk Management Strategy and plan as stipulated under the Flood and Water Management Act 2010.

Members were advised that the authority published its first Local Strategy in 2014, setting out the overarching approach to managing local flood risk and that alongside the local strategy, the Flood Risk Management Plan was published in 2015.

Members were advised that the Flood Risk Management Plan developed the objectives, measures and actions outlined in the Local Strategy into a more detailed plan for managing flooding in the authority’s communities based on political wards.

The cabinet member explained that the document is the second Local Strategy and whilst the authority previously published the Local Strategy separately, this new Local strategy and plan integrates the two documents into one, reducing the complexity and duplication.

Members were advised that this document will work alongside other strategic plans for shoreline management, infrastructure and planning and to set out the direction the authority wants to take it.

Members were informed that the document explains how flooding will be managed across the Local Authority area consistent with the objectives, measures and related policies and legislation set out in the National Strategies.

The Cabinet member explained that the document was written in a way that it's usable and referable for both the wider public and flood risk practitioners.

The Cabinet member stated that it is the authority’s intention that a strategy and the plan will be reviewed every two years, and the action plan will be updated accordingly.

Officers advised members that this is a very important area within highways and drainage. A lot of investment has been made to the authority and staffing and forward planning through succession planning. Members were made aware that officers are in discussions with Welsh Government on a regular basis and that officers currently have a 10-year pipeline planned for schemes throughout the county borough based on need, which has a total value of £35,000,000.

Officers explained that these are dependent on Welsh Government funding because currently in the authority’s capital budget the authority only have an allocation of £300,000 per year, which has been eroded by inflation. Officers feel that the authority are at the forefront of flood risk in Wales and maybe in the UK and has a great team of individuals and are building for the future, but a lot of it will depend on grand funding going forward.

Members were advised that the authority has undertaken large amount of works throughout the county borough and that while Welsh Government supplies 85% of the funding, 15% of the funding must be found internally by the local authority. Officers advised that for the £35 million mentioned, the authority will need to find around £5.1 million over the next 10 years.

Officers  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5